Property Price Market Update October 2010

September and October property market figures are starting to show that the volume of activity ie the number of buyers, sellers and the number of properties sold month by month seems to be dwindling.

This is likely to be, in part, due to media 'doom and gloom' about the property market, but also because of the fear of the effects of the pending government cuts, together with the increasing difficulty buyers have at securing a mortgage. For example, Lloyds have restricted property investors to only three buy to let properties, down from 10 and there is talk of banks insisting on repayment mortgages instead of interest only.

A North South divide in property activity continues to show. Most of the current rises reported in the market are from areas such as London (up by 11.4% year on year) although the increases continue to show a slowing of house price growth, closely followed by the South East (+9.4%) and the South West (+6.4%) year on year.

Brighton and Hove seems to be performing better than most areas, with a massive 15% rise versus 2009, way above the England and Wales average. Meanwhile the worst performing area is Darlington which in comparison has declined by over 6% year on year. Neath Port Talbot (Wales) in comparison was down by 4% month on month which was the biggest fall.

Property prices in other areas across the UK have been steady now for most of 2010, but some areas are showing month on month falls as we head towards Xmas. Areas including South West, North East, North West, East and Yorkshire and The Humber are all down September versus August 2010.

From a volume perspective, we do seem to be doing slightly better than 2009 so far, but the number of properties being sold has slipped to around six per agent (NAEA data) and the number of buyers is declining. In the meantime, the effect of removing HIPS has flooded the market with 'speculative' sales that are typically overpriced and are unlikely to end up being sold.

If you require detailed market commentary or have a question about what's happening in your area, then contact us on 0845 838 1763 or email enquiries@designsonproperty.co.uk. We can also help you value your own home if you need an independent view of how to value the property.